Reading, Etc.

Salutations, all. This has been an interesting month! I got to read a draft my father-in-law’s first novel, which takes place in Guatemala in the 1970’s. He’s got good timing, given the war crimes trials going on now. I can’t wait to see that published!

Now I’m reading The Outpost, a non-fiction report on an incident that takes place during my Operation Resolve characters’ mission in Afghanistan. It’s an insightful, and alarming, story of a poorly-positioned combat outpost and the soldiers who fought to defend it. The audiobook narrator has some pronunciation issues, but the information seems solid.

A few minutes ago I finished revising a short story that’s been driving me crazier than usual. I drafted it in November, poked and prodded it for most of January, rewrote it in February, and then gave up on it for a while. It’s the first frame story I’ve ever written (in which the present time at the beginning and end frames a long flashback in the middle). Hopefully the critters can help me tighten it down a bit more before publication.

Speaking of firsts, I received my first short story rejection this month. I’m officially in the short story market! In June I hope to get at least one more short story out for sale. No time for narration, although a couple of stories I read might still turn up in the Tales to Terrify rotation. Carry on!

Invisible Progress

This month: Same as it ever was, except with another (particularly horrific) tale in my voice on Tales to Terrify.

I discovered an irksome flaw in my writing which sent me rifling through my body of work to find and remove it. The next novel will be written in November, as per usual. Perfectionism is only problematic when you lack the time or resolve to pursue it, right? I keep thinking “this will only take one more week.” Perhaps next week will be the one.

I also returned to the totally diverting Story Nexus universes. Fallen London is still my favorite, but Winterstrike is intriguing and Cabinet Noir and Samsara are also well constructed. If you’ve never played Fallen London (formerly known as Echo Bizarre) it’s a free-to-play roleplaying browser game which progresses through a story told in a series of event cards. The other Story Nexus games appear to function the same way. You are presented with opportunities to address a panoply of objectives, aspirations, and desires as you see fit.

Think of them as exceedingly complicated choose your own adventure tales for grown-ups. If you’re a gamer who reads a lot or a reader who games casually, select your preferred flavor and enjoy. You can even build your own. I’ve got a couple of promising ideas for myself.

You can’t tell from this, but I really am working while waiting! Sooner or later I’ll have news, and it will be good.

Short Stories, Long Revision Cycle

Hello again! Still plugging away on short stories. Hopefully I’ll have two additional ones out next month. I’m going to have to stop messing with those soon if I want to get ready for a mid-year novel draft. In terms of story structure and writing concisely, it’s been a very productive year to date.

I temporarily stopped recording stories for Tales to Terrify due to personal issues, but a super creepy tale I read just came out in Episode 59. It’s Surfaces by Richard Chwedyk. Contains freakish artwork, renovations gone horribly wrong, and me trying my damndest to pronounce artists’ names.

That’s all for now! See you next month.

And We’re Off!

Happy New Year! By the end of January I’ll have traveled 7,000 miles for work already, which is great for my writing style. I am completely content to do one touristy thing per trip and spend the rest of the time working or writing. I may even skip the touristy bit in Cleveland. Driving in snow is not my idea of a good time.

A short story about someone from the  Operation Resolve universe is out on submission! I composed about half of it in my head during commutes, but I like the written version much better. Yesterday I finished the first draft of that ghost story I talked about last year, too! I’ll let ya’ll know how those do.

And finally, Panda (the cat) would like you to know about some tasty Petco coupon codes on Scott Sigler’s site which you could use to buy her food on the cheap. Theoretically you could buy food for a pet of your own, but she’s a selfish creature.

99¢ Kindle E-Book Review: Watson and Holmes Issue 1

I don’t usually read comic books. I am about as visually oriented as a cave salamander, and I’m picky about dialog. However, I can’t ignore a new adaptation of Sherlock Holmes. Issue 2 just came out, so Issue 1 of Watson and Holmes is now in my reviewable price range! The TV show Elementary transplanted Holmes from London to New York, but it’s set in Brooklyn Heights and filmed in Harlem. Watson and Holmes actually takes place in Harlem. That is as awesome as you think it is. Also contains: Infanticide, deductions, and Baker Street Irregulars.

Important things to know about Watson and Holmes: First, the author is true to the canon’s intent throughout, so you get the characters you love in a new setting (and I don’t believe that “you can’t take Holmes out of London” tripe. He must be an expert on a city, but it could be any city.) Second, you’re going to want to read this on a device that accommodates color. The artwork is excellent. It’s the first comic book I’ve read in which the inside art is as great as the cover art. Third, the mystery is not solved in this issue. Issue 2 is also 99¢, but I was still a bit disappointed.

I love many things about this adaptation. Let’s start with the title: Watson first! Without Watson it would be hard to appreciate Holmes, so it’s about time the man got his due. Holmes is far less insufferable in here than in most adaptations, although he refuses to acknowledge that Jon (no “h”) is a medical intern, not a doctor. The author is setting up a cool bridge between Watson’s military career and his medical one. And yes, our heroes are black. I’m not going to say any more about that because anything I say, including this sentence, will be interpreted as offensive by somebody.

Mostly I wish there was more to Issue 1! Our heroes meet and get right to work, and that’s great, but it really bothered me that the issue ends in the middle of an action scene. I’m going to buy Issue 2, which I’m sure was the intent, but it’s still aggravating. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle used a novella to get these two together, their backstories described, and their mystery solved. This could be my own bias toward prose. The original stories were released in serial format, after all. The dialog’s not as clever as the BBC’s adaptation, probably hampered by the format, but the characters are truer to the originals than Elementary.

I recommend this comic book to Sherlockians and Holmesians who enjoy the graphic format and want to see their favorite detective in a new color and culture.

Oh Crap, I Missed November

I did hit 50,000 words, while typing from my parents’ couch on Thanksgiving weekend. I’m revising the stories with the best prospects, so you Critters will see those soon, poor souls. I hope everyone had a successful NaNoWriMo, whether you “won” or not.

Another story I narrated ran on Tales to Terrify last month. It’s called “An Eye for an Eye,” and involves very sharp knives. The episode includes an interview with the author, Nancy Kilpatrick, so you should check that out.

This is not my narration, but the fourth book in the Guild of the Cowry Catchers series is coming out in free audio format this month. I reviewed the first book a while back, and recently finished reading the five-book set. It’s my new second-favorite epic fantasy (behind Lord of the Rings), and considering the amount of epic fantasy I’ve consumed in my time that says a lot. Actually I’m not sure it is epic fantasy. It’s epic in scope, but you mostly follow the adventures of one character. It’ll make more sense if you start from the beginning, if you’re not yet as rabid a fan as me.

I am one of those curmudgeons who experiences the holiday season as a constant struggle to avoid murder or suicide, so I hope you have a more enjoyable December than I will. See you in lucky 2013.

Happy Halloween Eve!

WordPress munched my previous post, so I’ll try again. I’m getting ready to fall down the NaNoWriMo rabbit hole in about a day (o_O) I’ve got an outline and I know how to use it. Beware.

I’ve been getting a lot of use out of this:

No, wait, this!

Recording narration for the Tales to Terrify. The first of these to post was Tim Waggoner’s Do No Harm, a spooky technozombie thriller. I’ve lent my voice to a couple other stories which haven’t posted yet, and I’m working on another now. Narrating is a fun way to make my illiterate friends “read” more fiction. My hubby seems pleased at my sudden interest in audio engineering and the physics of sound, too.

Tales to Terrify is accepting short horror stories if you’ve got one you want to publish for free audio publicity. I’ve got a ghost story I’ve been meaning to clean up and submit, but I haven’t gotten around to it yet. That excuse looks silly now that I’ve written it. Maybe that’s what I’ll do tomorrow while waiting for the neighborhood goblins to come knocking.

See you in November for a NaNoWriMo win announcement, I hope!